Steam generator



Oct. 16,- 1928.

R. M. JONES STEAM GENERATOR Filed Dec. 26, 1922 \1 5 L AW MM d 4 I 2 L 5 H -w\ I Ill J w l y mhw 5 llllllllllllllllllllllllllllll I- {K a a \\r W a E I M Y m V h n w r w n Ila .m k, y k m 4 I\ W 0 6 n 5 AWE/V7179 Patented Oct. 16,1928.

UNITED- STATES PATENT-OFFICE; 11

RICHARD MARMADUKE JONES, 0F NORTHAMPTON, ENGLAND, ASSIGNOR TO UNITED SHOE MACHINERY CORPORATION, or Pn'rEnsoN, NEW JERSEY; A conronnr'ron or new JERSEY.

Application filed December 26, 1922, Serial No.

.This invention'relates to steam generators. While the illustrated apparatus is more particularly intended for use in connection with welt sewing, outsole stitching and like ma chines employed in the manufacture or repair of boots or shoes, the invention mayadvantageously be utilized in connection with other machines and v for; other i purposes for which steam is required, such, for example, as heat-' ing glue or heating water. i

' in the equipment for this purpose being costly and involving regular off cial boiler inspection but much time is lost in heating up a cold machine before beginningwork. k

There will be described, purely by way of illustration, a form of the invention which, as applied to such sewingmachines as last referred to, has, inter, alia the advantages of :such safety even when'usedby inexperienced operators as to render, oificial boiler inspection unnecessary, of costing but a fraction of the cost of the customary equipment referred to, of enabling a machine to be started up in a fraction only of the time requisite with the usual equipment, of'being capable of being filled to replenish losses due to evap oration and leakage withoutinterrupting its Qaction, and of being free of that liability 'to irregular and imperfect operation, owing to water locks of condensed steam in the heating conduits of the machine, to which the customary equipment is subject. s v I v i The above and other objects of the invention and itsfeatures-(willbecome fully evident from a consideration of the example 'above referred to,;which. will now ,be described. with reference to the accompanying drawingsand said features will be particularly pointed out infthe. appended claims. Inthedrawing's: I V p x s'rEm ennnnn'ron.

608,935, and inlG-reat Britain January 3, 1922.

- Figure lis an elevation, partly in section, of a steam generator according to the invention, and I Figure 2 is a sectional plan view on the line 2-2 of Fi Like re erence characters indicate like 7 parts in the figuresof the drawings.

In the construction shown in the drawings,

water froma tank' 50 passes through apipe i 50 5-1, inwhich is a check-valve 52,;to an upright pipe 53. Surrounding the upright plpe 53 1s an annulargas burner 54; which 'supportsan asbestos lined chimney 55. The

pipe 55, has formed on it a flange 56 which supports a superheating.labyrinth'57 which is clamped against the flange 56 l0y a cap nut 58 threaded on to the upper end of the'pipe 53. The passages 59 in the labyrinth are covered by a plate 60, whichma-y beef thin copper, fixed to thelabyrinthby bolts 61'. Resting on the heads of thebolts 61 is a cover 62 from which projects a chimney 63. Theentrance into the passages in the labyrinth is through an opening formed in the side of the upper endofthe pipe 53 and the exitis througha pipe 6 L Whichpasses up through the chimney 63 and servesas a steam supply for those parts ofthe machine, orkany other apparatus thatitis desired to heat. The return pipe from the machineyor other. heated apparatus, is shown at165 This pipe is connected to a small reservoir 66 Which has at its upper end a pipe 67- leading into a large open tanker reservoir 50 and at .its lower end a pipe 68 forming, with thespipe 50,aU- tube connection s between the, small "reservoir 66 and the large reservoir 50. L This arrangement results in the hot condensedstjeambeing collected and fed to the generator insome measureseparatelyso that the cold water from thelarge reservoir" is, generally speaking, only added, tothe hotwaterfrom the chamber 66, as the latter flows to the generator, cluerltoleakage, evaporation, etca This isbecause the, condensed steam returning from ,the-pipe65 tends to raise the level eithewater in the small reservoir66 and in order ,to: maintain the levels in both "the small reservoir .66- and 1 the; largefgreservoir 50 equal, the water in the oonnecting pipeflGS, between the two, fiowswtowards ;the:,T-

connection 69. As the circulationftothe boiler practically continuous, this warm as neededto replaceshortage of water sur with some" un'oondensed in the ope'ratipn of absolutely safe under all cond'iti'onsahd requiringljnooflicial boiler inspection, while the tsual steam generators for the'work'meu pounds to" the large reservoir 50. During continued op'e rm t on, ho e t ec n tee th t n 50 b ome es essar l a s Q Ii 'th a ed 9w.- lng to'the condensation' thereon of steam escaping from the pipe 67 and alsoowingigtoi i the imperfect action of the U-tube in separatingthe- \vaterzfroinfltlie, two sources of Sup ply, due both to diffusion and to the inevitable ging in the pipes on sudden closing of'the che'ck valve-52t g 1 Theillustrated steam generator operates in tlie followin manne'r: Water is oured; into the tank 50 and flows through the pipes 50 and 51, throughthe check valve 52and'into the upright 'pipe 53, and thenyas the filli'ng isontii ued;-it flows throughthe pipeGS into the small-reservoir 66i lVhen tlie Water level is still'b elo'iv the top of thecliimney '55 the filling is stopped, in order that no Water may reach the 'superheating labyrinth 57. When the gai's' burner 5411s lighted, steam'is soon generatedjin the upright pipe '53,- and this is then superheated as it passesthroughthe labyririthf 57. The p through the outletaor steam'su'pply pipe 64' to the a pa atus-to be heated; The condensed steam returns through the pipe '65" together steam; As previouseztplaine'd, the condensed steam passes through the smallreservoir 66' and the pipes 68, 51 and through the check Valve 52' and is then-reconveited into steam, The circula tion through the system is thus continuedas long as theburner'is lighted; Mostfof the returned "steam from the pipe 65, that is not already condensed, is condensed in the up per part of-the small reservoir 66 or in the pipe 67 but such as is not, passes out into the ati'nosphere from thelower end of the pipe 67 and part of this is condensed When it strikes the colder Water in the large reservoir; 50.

It Willbe seen that boththe'intake andoutlet ofthe 'cir'culating system is open to the atmosphere and, accordingly, only slight pressure, dii'e to' the friction ofthe steamin passing through theapparatu'sto be heated-,,

-ca11'be developed. VVhi'le this slight pressure is sulficient'to close the check valve52 and prevent circul'ation the reverse direction, it is far tooloiv tomakethe'use of a safety valve 'iiec'ss'aryl Accordingly this steam generator-is particularly useful for putting into the hands of those unexp'erienced steamlboilers, it being,

t'ioned develop from to squ are; inch of steam pressure. I a Anotheradvantage is due" to the factthat the generator ibe ifilled at any time to'f replenlshlo'sses due-t6 evaporation, Without insteam then passes mo ph c a P e u e ited quantity of terrupting its operation, y merely adding Water totlie large reservoir 50. 1

Furthermore, the generator is even more effective" than those using steam under the pre s r s ti n ,v t rhe li a nz lmt th temperature of the superheated steam can easily be made higher than thesteam generated in the usual pressure system, and the superheated steam, expanding similar to a gas as it islieate'd (and being free to expand because the outlet is open to atmospheric pressure)," circulates (because of the dillerence in pres sure betiveenthe generator and thelatmosphereymom rapidly than steam under pressu'reWhere circulation can take place only asrapidly as condensat-ionoccurs because the inlet and outlet' are under equal pressures. Furthermore, superheated steam can not con;- dense in the passages of the heated apparatus until it ha's'lostall ofits superheat. Thus,

by taking' advantage of these tyvo properties ofsuperheatedsteam in the present constructioii, the formation of pockets of Water in the apparatus being heated is extremely rare after the. Working(temperature is reached. Furthermore, when such pockets do form While getting the a paratus to Working temperature'orat any other time, the pressure automaticallyincreases slightly in the gener'ator above atmospheric pressure until the ater 'bloiv'n out (the cheek valve 52 preventing the' pressure from Workingin the opposite direction). I The pressure then becomes lowered automatically to the usual slight pressure necessary to produce normal "circulation. 1 v i Having described my invention, What I claim as newand desire to secure by Letters Patent-of the United States is I I generator for'superheatedsteam, having,incombination, a'Water reservoir open to atmosphericpressure, a source of heat, a steam generatingportion in which only a limited quantit y'of 'tvater can-be converted into steam atone time'by heat suppliedfrom said ly'below"the water'level of the reservoinla connection between the reservoir and the steain'generatin'g portion, a steam superheating portion containing ,a connected seriesl'of source, said convei'sion occurring man; d slighttortuous passages located a'bove 'thesteam 1 o generating portion, a connection between'said portions, a cover common to all of said tortuo'u s passagesdnade of material of high heat conductivity and located on the underside of the superheatingportion so as to be exposed tothe source ofheat, and an outlet forsuper heated steam a'tthe en'dof the series of torhieu fip s ge r hes r e e r h connectio'nto the steam generating portion.

' generatorfor-superheated steam,'havmg, incombination, 'a vvaterreservoir open to steam at one time by heat supplied froinsaid source, said conversion occurring at and slightly below the water level of the reservoir, a connection between the reservoir and the steam generating portion, a check valve in said connection opening toward the generator, a steam superheating portion containing a connected series of tortuous passages located above the steam generating portion, a connection between said portions, .a cover common to all of said tortuous passages made of material of high heat conductivity and 10- Q cated on the under side of the superheating portion so as to be exposed to the source of heat, and an outlet for superheated steam at the end of the series of tortuous passages far- RICHARD MARMADUKE JONES.

have signed my 

